Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Hot Seat Hip Cuisine

More often than not, Chefs come and go while the restaurant stays on. This is also what causes the standards perception of the restaurant to fluctuate. Jiang Nan Chun at the Four Seasons is one such place and this legendary restaurant has a reputation for turning their Chinese Executive Chefs into celebrities. If u happen to be the chosen one to step into the shoes of two of their previous chefs who have gone on to become culinary darlings for the media, then u are in for a hotter seat to keep things going. Chubby bubbly Chef Steven Ng has been in this hot seat that had been filled previously by other excellent Chinese Executive Chefs like Sam Leong and Jeremy Leung.What I like about this place is its modern concept of allowing its patrons to choose and plan their own menus from their ala carte selections. Chef Steven has also embarked on an ambitious promotion program featuring the cuisines of the Southern States of China rotated on a monthly schedule. Currently the region in focus is Yunnan and there is a selection of significant dishes featuring ingredients from this subtropical climate region. Complimenting the menus was a selection of fine Chinese tea blends. I chose a light rose flavoured Eight Treasures Tea whose floral notes were accompanied by other ingredients like apricot kernels, dried longan, wolf berries and anise root. I would say the tea was very nice, very refreshing.We started off with a Dim Sum amuse bouche which was a Steamed Siu Mai with a touch of Ginger Spring Onion Puree. The dainty little morsel was made with a filling of crunchy prawns and topped with tobiko. I liked the idea of the sauce with the dumpling as this balanced out the seafood character of it. Two bites of the dumpling and it was gone.Specially ordered for N was the Soy Braised Chicken which was also our starter. Flavours of superior soy sauce and rose wine came through very well but I find the sauce a little too salty on its own for my taste. However with plain rice, it does help to take off the slightly over salty perception of the sauce. Skillfully carved and chopped up to a nice boneless portion, the meat was very tender on bite and its skin was smooth with the flavours of soy, wine, spices and herbs. Because of the slightly over salty sauce, I would rate it a second to Hua Ting’s version.The Three Treasures Soup featured a rich meaty essence that tasted of dried scallops, ham and a superior stock. I have always preferred essence type of soups than starch thicken ones in fine Chinese restaurants as I feel it takes a lot more skills for a chef to produce a consommé quality kind of soup than the latter. Two delicate pieces of premium dried shitake mushroom and bamboo shoots stuffed bamboo pith garnished the soup along with a pair of wolfberries.From the main courses onwards, our selections take a split with Mum and N taking on the Steamed Barramundi with Dong Cai Topping while I opted for the Baked Cod Fish Fillet on Scrambled Egg Whites. The Steamed Barramundi was very fresh but a little over cooked which was fortunately saved by a moist dong cai topping and a superior soy sauce. A quick sauté of finely sliced black fungus, ginger and spring onions complimented the fish dish giving it and extra dimension in both flavours and colours.My baked cod fish fillet was a piece of art. Resembling like a fish on clouds, the sweet soy marinated codfish sat on gently wine flavoured scrambled egg whites. The serving plate was painted artistically with thicken dark soy and a fine sprig of chervil crowned the Swiss Matterhorn shaped like fillet, giving the whole dish a touch of elegance. On taste, it’s hard to go wrong with codfish unless it is not fresh. I like the caramelized edges that gave the moist juicy flesh a fragrant roasted note.At this point, I must mention that this restaurant does not serve rice out of a rice cooker. Rather the chef chooses to steam individual bowls of rice and u can tell when they serve it to u as the rice comes straight from the steam and it is not fluffed at all. For second main courses, we opted to share two meat items instead and a poultry. N took on the Steam Minced Pork Patty with Water Chestnut while mum and I took on a classic Sweet and Sour Pork and the Crisp Skin Duck Yunnan Style with Pickled Vegetables respectively.The steamed pork patty was very soft to the point of crumbling due to too much bicarbonate of soda being added to it. The minced meat was a melt in the mouth tender but that wasn’t what I was really looking out for. Rather I would say that I like the additional dimension of fresh shrimps that contrasted the soft meat with a firmer bite and the crunchy bits of water chestnuts. It acted as a go between and helped to bridge the other two ingredients so that upon chewing, u go from the softness of the meat to a firmer bite and onwards to the ultimate crunch of the water chestnuts. Because it was served on a pool of superior soy sauce, it was getting bored for me again.The Sweet and Sour Pork arrived as a disappointment. I have learnt from older generations of Cantonese Masterchefs that Sweet and Sour Pork is one of the black stars of the kitchen. It is easy to prepare and easier to get it wrong for the wrong reasons. Benchmarks include a crispiness of the deep fried pork cubes despite being coated with the sauce which must constitute a fair amount of good quality plum sauce versus an equal amount of ketchup and chili balanced out by sugar and vinegar. The rest of the ingredients are irrelevant. Unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way an it tasted more of overcooked pork cubes soaking too much of the sauce that causes it to lose that important crispiness dimension. It also reeked too much of the ketchup used and other flavours were lacking. The best reference I have had so far is still Sik Wai Sin’s version (See earlier post titled “Sweat It Out” April 07)My Crispy Skin Yunnan Roast Duck with Pickled Vegetables was nothing to shout about. It was drizzled with a fruity plum sauce by the time it arrived and that caused the skin to loose its crisp. What I like rather was the home made pickled vegetable that was similar to “Kiam Chye” or salted vegetable but less salty and sweeter. Credit must however be given to the tender duck meat and the quality of it. Why? It’s because even my mum, who doesn’t like duck meat due to its gamey character, could take on two pieces of the carved breast meat. Overall the duck was nice but the description in the menu was a little misleading for me.We all share the same vegetables and since spring season means fresh porcinis from Yunnan were available, we opted for that from the special promotions menu. These lovely earthy and musk flavoured mushrooms from Yunnan which is a fungus haven with more 600 edible varieties were sautéed in a spicy fermented beans and chilli oil, paired with red capsicums and Hong Kailan. The mushrooms were very good at picking up the spiciness and savoury characters from the fermented beans, creating a harmonious burst of flavours on the palate.Desserts were a selection of Double Boiled Hasma with Red Dates, Sweet Almond Cream with Sesame Dumplings and a novel Crispy Rice Wafers with Maltose and Sesame Seeds. While the first two desserts were rather normal and usual, I liked the Crispy Rice Wafers as a break away from the usual norm. The sweet malt taste and nutty sesame fragrance was very pleasant and I had a fantasy of having it paired with a very cold kirsch flavoured crème patisserie and berries resembling a French mille feuille. Besides desserts, complimentary Chinese Petit Fours were also given and N liked the chrysanthemum cookies very much. I found the Red Bean and Green Tea Pudding Jelly more interesting of its contrasting colours and taste. Overall there were hits and misses for this restaurant and it would be a tough challenge to uphold or elevate Jiang Nan Chun to its status set by Chefs Sam Leong and Jeremy Leung during their tours of duty here.

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About Me

Trained at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) and SHATEC, spanning 20 years of culinary experiences in hotels, restaurants, private yachts, personal chef services and food science, Chef Eric has done many successful partnerships with PA and private culinary studios. His workshops are informative, educational and inspiring to all who share a passion for food both in travelling, cooking and eating. He builds the success of the workshops through the participants’ successes of cooking up a great meal at home!!
Chef Eric’s culinary achievements include being a WACS certified culinary judge for international and national level culinary events, a recipient for World Gourmet Summit At-Sunrice GlobalChef Awards 2005, Guest Chef for the Singapore Tourism Board’s Singapore Food Festival 2008 Makan Classes, PA’s annual Singapore Culinary Journey Series. Other accolades include judging at FHA Culinary Challenge 2010, Penang Culinary Challenge 2012. He was also a Team Assistant to the Singapore National Culinary Team for Food and Hotel Asia (FHA) 1998 Salon Culinaire.

What past participants say about my cooking workshops

Dear Chef,

Congratulations on your award, we feel honoured to learn under a world class chef. I enjoyed your lessons very much because firstly it's cheaper than any other schools outside, and your recipes are interesting & easy to follow. I have cooked your recipes on several occasions and my family enjoy the change in my style of cooking very much.

Thanks & RegardsMay April 21, 2005

Hi Chef Yong,

I attended your class on Roast Beef at CSC last night and really really enjoyed it! (I was the one sitting in front right at the side asking many questions and first to help you take the samples to pass around the class), and I am actually a trained Home Economics teacher and still I found your lessons useful, your tips helpful, your teaching patient and thorough. I immediately recommended your classes to my friends and colleagues :) I will def adopt and adapt some of your recipes for my young students in time to come.

Dear Chef Yong,Yesterday was my first time attending your class and I enjoyed it. It was my first time too coming to know about the different types of sauces,vinegars and herbs. I'm new to Western cooking. I'm looking forward to attend your next workshop next Wed at CSC.

Have a nice day!RachelParticipant from Civil Service Club15th November 2007

Hello Chef , I've just attended your cooking class and I wish to be on your Mailing list.PS: the food is GREAT! (: Thank You and God BlessLim Siew GekSaturday 30th June 2007

Dear Chef,I attended your last class at cainhill last Saturday morning. The dishes were very yummy. Which civil service club are you teaching? I check there were a few.RegardsJennifer AngMonday 25th June 2007

Hi ChefI enjoyed your Italian cooking class on 23 June (Sat) morning. The pasta and grilled chicken were simply yummy! I also enjoyed the tomato based sauce which was served with the grilled chicken. Would appreciate if you could let me have the recipe for the tomato sauce.Hope to attend more of your classes in future. Will be checking out your blog for updates.

Thank you.Lisa.Sunday 24th June 2007

Dear Chef,
I have enjoyed your cooking classes and my family are always looking forward for your class.
The Pasta Carbonara was so.........so delicious and the best I ever tested in Singapore.
Cheers
Yik Huey
23rd April 2007

Dear ChefA very happy, healthy and successful new year to you and your family.

I have attended all your Chinese New Year workshops (menu #4 to #9) and I am impressed - you make cooking seem so easy and your recipes are yummy.Thanks for sharing.I have prepared some of the recipes for my family renunion dinner and received rave reviews - "yummilicious, refreshing change, taste good and look good..." In fact many relatives are asking for recipes of the cereal prawns, xo meepok,braised duck and black glutinous rice.I am in the midst of sorting out your recipes and would appreciate if you will send me the brochures/pdf files on menu 4 to 7 for my file.

Thanks again.

With kind regardsLynda LowWednesday, February 28, 2007

Dear Chef,I am Carmen from Colombia. I took some cooking lessons in Marine Parade last year and enjoyed them very much with my friend Zuleyca from Argentina. I am leaving Singapore next week. I'm going to England. I will miss your lessons a lot. Congratulations for your great work. I hope my friend Zuleyca can continued having this lessons. Thanks a lot for your information and all the best for you and your family. Kind regards Carmen
29th May 2006

Hi Chef,
Thanks for sharing all your interesting recipes with us.
Looking forward to all your upcoming interesting recipes. Glad to note that there is a menu focusing on "Hi Tea session" as I do love to invite friends for some simple delights of such. I must say that I enjoyed and love all your Italian pasta classes. It is really good and fantastic.
Thanks again to your passion in food and willingly share with us all the interesting recipes. I truly learned and enjoyed most of your classes that I attended. You are simply the BEST!
Regards,
Puihun
8th July 2006

Dear Chef,
What a lovely Tiramisu that was. Heavenly! The lamb and the salad were fantastic, too.
Regards,
Kay Parkinson June 28th 2006